Do Comets Dream?
|pages = 262 |year = 2371 |ISBN = 0743411307 (paperback) (Kindle) }} Do Comets Dream? is a Pocket TNG novel written by S.P. Somtow. Published by Pocket Books, it was first released in . Summary ;From the book jacket :Every five thousand years, or so the people of Thanet believe, the world ends in fire and a new cycle of creation begins. Now the Last Days are once again upon them, and a fiery star draws near. This is the Death-Bringer, the Eater of the World, whose coming heralds the end of all things… :But to Picard and the crew of the ''Starship Enterprise, the Death-Bringer appears to be nothing more than a rogue comet, easily destroyed. Picard faces a difficult dilemma: how can he save the Thanetian's rich and intricate civilization without destroying the very beliefs upon which their culture is based?'' :The quandary is challenge enough, yet the captain's position is even more complicated when Deanna Troi discovers that, incredibly, the comet is alive! Background information * This is the first and, to date, only Star Trek novel written by S.P. Somtow. Characters Regular and recurring characters ;Jean-Luc Picard : Starfleet , CO of . Picard was obligated to make first contact with the Thanetians. ;William T. Riker : Starfleet commander, first officer of Enterprise-D. ;Data : Android Starfleet lieutenant commander, operations officer of the Enterprise-D. Data was capable of interfacing with the Dailong and providing useful information about Thanets's past with Thanith. ;Beverly Crusher : Starfleet commander, CMO of Enterprise-D. ;Worf : Klingon Starfleet lieutenant who was assigned as Enterprise-D security chief. ;Deanna Troi : Half-Betazoid Starfleet commander assigned as Enterprise-D counselor. She was able to directly communicate with Artas via telepathy. ;Geordi La Forge : VISOR-sighted Starfleet lieutenant commander assigned as Enterprise-D chief engineer. ;Simon Tarses: Human/Romulan Starfleet officer who falls head-over-heels in love with Kio. Other characters ;Artas: Child chosen to become the Thanopstru, or Death-bringer, who longs for a mother. ;Kio: Teenage daughter of Straun who rebels against her teachings and longs to explore the universe. ;Straun: Kio's father, puppet ambassador to the Federation who is conservative about his religious beliefs. ;Halliday: Human professor studying Thanet up until the days of its destruction. ;Adam Halliday: Human/Betazoid boy raised on Thanet with high intellect. ; Engvig: Norwegian ensign who is assigned to the Enterprise and eagerly awaits adventure. ;Indhoun: Artas' brother. ;Shivantak: Leader of all the people of Thanet, he interprets the Panvivlion and is of the highest caste. References first contact; caste; prime directive; comet ;Dailong: A biological engineered machine large enough that whole cities can be built upon it. ;Panvivlion:Holy book of the Thanetians that dictates everything from what one may eat to how the world will end. ;Thanet: The setting for much of the story, Thanet is a planet with a five-thousand-year-old society with a rigid caste system. ;Thanetians:Identical to Humans except for webbing between their fingers, which they paint. ;Thanith: A planet destroyed long ago. It has a society nearly identical to that of Thanet, with which it is at war. ;Thanopstru: The Death-Bringer, a weapon deployed by Thanith to destroy Thanet. External link * cs:Do Comets Dream? de:Träumen Kometen? Category:Novels